Local Beer Gets More Local

October 17, 2011Author: Scott

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Wine has long been a product in which the grapes are grown near where the wine is produced, often on the same farm. This is a trend that may be starting soon with beer as well. A project started in downtown Toronto, Canada is looking to grow hops in the city to be used in making local beer.

This spring, hops were planted on the property of businesses such as I deal Coffee and restaurant/bar Parts & Labour (both located in the west end of downtown Toronto), a handful of residential backyard gardens and Wychwood Barns, a park and community hub. Katie Mathieu tended to the hops at Parts & Labour – she runs a planter garden project on the building’s rooftop, growing vegetables and herbs for use in the restaurant. Ms. Mathieu says the hops thrived in planters on the roof.

This is a really positive move towards a more green method of brewing beer, and I hope to see more of it. Michael Clark, co-founder of Toronto’s Bellwoods Brewery had this to say:

“Even if the city hops program isn’t a colossal money-maker, there’s a tangible benefit to the greening of space and having it produce something that connects people to that space,” says Mr. Clark.